Series Rover guru's, need some help/advice!

[TeriAnn]

If you're willing to go down that road, it will be a lot of fun and a great project. However, I bet you could find a running 109 in better shape for $5K and be better off.

Trust me, I bought a $500 Rover.

On the other hand, I bought a $350 Rover, towed her home and am still driving her 30 years later. But this one appears to be in a lot worse shape. At first glance, figure a new frame, new suspension major bulkhead repairs & probably rot in the steel door frames. It will cost a lot more than buying a decent condition LR.

Looking at the pictures, it is a factory negative earth vehicle with mechanical brake lever in the vertical direction. My guess would be a 1967 Series IIA.

 

[EricWS]

That grill is worth more then the rest of the vehicle. Nothing like a good braai flavored with fresh bug juice and mystery protein.

You can find the breakfast for those fairly easily. RN and Pangolin have a few in stock that are quite nice.

Some interesting clues as to what it may be. Flat apron before the breakfast. That makes it earlier. Breakfast with the lights inside is early as well. Looks like the later wings were put on. Steering wheel is a later style but could be a replacement.

Guessing it may be a mid 60's.

 

[Michael Slade]

You can find the breakfast for those fairly easily. RN and Pangolin have a few in stock that are quite nice.

Some interesting clues as to what it may be. Flat apron before the breakfast. That makes it earlier. Breakfast with the lights inside is early as well. Looks like the later wings were put on. Steering wheel is a later style but could be a replacement.

Guessing it may be a mid 60's.

Here's my guess:

Usually a parking brake assembly is harder to swap out. We see that the fenders are already non-stock for that year, so I'm thinking front end damage. Owner could have gotten the early apron (that's usually the first thing I look at too...), with the later SIII wings and cobbled it together.

People usually don't swap out a parking brake lever on a whim. Do the vents have screwed on hinges or spot-welded hinges? I don't think they're screwed hinges, which usually go with the flat apron (to be year specific...1959-1960-ish).

An interesting truck. I started out with a $500 Rover also and it's jumping through hoops like no Rover from '53 ever dreamed of. You can do anything with these trucks given a healthy recepie of time/money/imagination.

Get it, look it over, talk to a LOT of people (this list is a very good resource), and take your time. Make sure you get a title that matches the VIN plate on the bulkhead. That is gold.

 

[Clark White]

You can find the breakfast for those fairly easily. RN and Pangolin have a few in stock that are quite nice.

Some interesting clues as to what it may be. Flat apron before the breakfast. That makes it earlier. Breakfast with the lights inside is early as well. Looks like the later wings were put on. Steering wheel is a later style but could be a replacement.

Guessing it may be a mid 60's.

Ok, I'm lost. What in the world is the breakfast of a vehicle? I always thought breakfast was something you ate, and only put on a vehicle when you spilt :chowtime: Best I can figure is that it's the grill???

 

[Clark White]

Never mind, I found it on fourfold.com. Any idea why the grill area is called the breakfast?

 

[JackW]

Its a 1967 to 71 truck - 1966 Land Rovers had the windshield wiper motors on the windshield. Best guess is that its a 67 with later model fenders but it could be a 69-71 that's had the earlier grill panel installed.

If its got power brakes its probably the latter. Still very much a project...

 

[greenmeanie]

I see a late IIA 6 cyl.
The fuel pump says 6 cyl, the sills and wheel nuts combined with the late steering wheel and wipers say it is one of those trucks that was built from 67 through to 69. The front wings are an add on.

Just as point of experience. I bought a truck that was in better condition than that and thought I'd be up and running for about $10K. After going over her and seeing what needed to be fixed I started stripping. Realistically I'll be on the road again for $20-$25K but that involves plowing a fair amount of money into the engine and drivetrain. Once youadmit that you're going to repair/replace the bulkehead and T-posts thern your pretty much down to a body off rebuild anyway.

Cheers
Gregor

 

[kellymoe]

I see a late IIA 6 cyl.
The fuel pump says 6 cyl, the sills and wheel nuts combined with the late steering wheel and wipers say it is one of those trucks that was built from 67 through to 69. The front wings are an add on.

Just as point of experience. I bought a truck that was in better condition than that and thought I'd be up and running for about $10K. After going over her and seeing what needed to be fixed I started stripping. Realistically I'll be on the road again for $20-$25K but that involves plowing a fair amount of money into the engine and drivetrain. Once youadmit that you're going to repair/replace the bulkehead and T-posts thern your pretty much down to a body off rebuild anyway.

Cheers
Gregor

Unless your turning the truck into a near new truck I just cant see spending that kind of money. Granted I did all my own work but I was able to get my 69 up and running for less than $2k. It didn't look that nice but it was dependable and a good daily driver. I even drove it to work in South Central LA for a few years. If I even had a doubt about dependability I wouldn't have driven it to work every day.

Get the truck. Prioritise what needs to be done first. Get it running and then worry about making it look pretty.

 

[Clark White]

Going back out to the place tomorrow morning to talk to the guy, see if he will sell it for a couple hundred. One of my friends says he saw it go through town on a flatbed, so he may have the same plans for it as me, in which case I'm pooched. Think I'm going to offer him $300, see what he says. Hoping he bites, I think this thing would be a lot of fun, I'm rather intrigued by the massive amount of work it will involve (I'm bored out of my mind here, so I desperately need something to occupy my time!)

 

[Alaska Mike]

It would be a great project for the right owner.

On a side note, would dropping the body on a Range Rover chassis be an option? Make for an interesting project, as cheap as Rangies are going for these days.

 

[Michael Slade]

Fraught with landmines that plan is. Doable yes...but levitating an X-wing fighter also is.

 

[Blair G]

Fraught with landmines that plan is. Doable yes...but levitating an X-wing fighter also is.

This is not the Land Rover you are looking for.

 

[greenmeanie]

Unless your turning the truck into a near new truck I just cant see spending that kind of money. Granted I did all my own work but I was able to get my 69 up and running for less than $2k. It didn't look that nice but it was dependable and a good daily driver. I even drove it to work in South Central LA for a few years. If I even had a doubt about dependability I wouldn't have driven it to work every day.

Get the truck. Prioritise what needs to be done first. Get it running and then worry about making it look pretty.

I should have qualified my comments. I could have had her up and running for about $2-3K but she would always have been a beaten up old rover. She had an engine conversion and a rewire of questionable quality plus a lot of SPO work. When I got into her guts the full strip and rebuild was the way to go. I also have plans for lots of mods. If you have T-post and bulkhead rot then your most of the way there on a repair anyway.

I tend to agree. Have an adventure. Buy the truck, do a proper review of the machine once you've got it home and then draw up a plan based on what you want the vehicle to be. With that done you'll have a good idea of cost. If it doesn't work then you'll not have lost a lot of money and can probably recover your costs selling it on.

Cheers
Gregor

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Most tell-tale sign is the IIA dash. I've found most of the duals are IIA that they put series III wings on, not the other way around for some reason. that frame and body does look rusty though...

 

[overlander]

You can spend then next 5 years playing golf every weekend, end up spending $10k, and have nothing to show for it or any resale value.

If it calls you, go to it. Do what you love.

A well restored old series will draw the same attention, sometimes even more, than a Lamborghini or Porsche.

As for breakfast, try to picture 2 fried eggs on a griddle, then look at the photo again.